Skah Shah # 1
Forever

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce an extensive reissue program of Meiko Kaji's first five album released in Japan between 1972 and 1974 on Teichiku Records. The program, in partnership with Teichiku and Meiko Kaji, will see her first five albums reissued on vinyl for the first time ever in their original Japanese artwork and remastered audio. Famous for her early 70s exploitation movies ('Lady Snowblood', the 'Female Prisoner Scorpion' and 'Stray Cat Rock' series) revered by Tarantino, Meiko Kaji was also a singer releasing albums to tie in with her movie career. These albums are a fascinating mix of Japanese Pop and Groove with superb funky cinematic orchestrations as displayed in "Hajiki Uta". The album is reissued with original artwork on deluxe Gatefold sleeve LP, OBI strip and a 2-p insert featuring new liner notes by by Hashim Kotaro Bharoocha who has interviewed Meiko for the occasion. It features "Urami Bushi" the theme song for the Female Prisoner Scorpion series which was used in Kill Bill Vol 2 and also "Onna No Jumon" the theme song for the film "Female Prisoner Scorpion - Jailhouse 41."A cult icon on the international film scene, Japanese actress Meiko Kaji, born in Tokyo, has been put into the spotlight internationally by Quentin Tarantino when he heavily based his Kill Bill film on the 1973 revenge genre film 'Lady Snowblood,' one of Kaji's most famous films. By the time she appeared in it, she had already made almost fifty feature films (she began her career in 1965) among which the cult 'Stray Cat Rock' and 'Female Prisoner Scorpion' film series and she was one of the most famous exploitation actresses in Japan doubling as a sex symbol. This gave the studios the idea of getting her to start a singing career and release music closely associated with the films she starred in often singing the theme songs. Thus she began releasing records at the dawn of the 70s, recording several 7" singles and five albums for Teichiku which have become sought-after and almost as cult as her films. ​Drawing on her film roles, the music on these albums were an uber-cool mix of kayokyoku (Japanese Pop), traditional Enka Music, Acid Folk and Funky beats arranged by the best producers of the time in a cinematic way that could sound like Ennio Morricone or Jean-Claude Vannier. that explosive cocktail is featured in full blow on the first album from the Meiko Kaji reissue program, 'Hajiki Uta' released by Teichiku in 1973. ​The album featured two film songs, namely 'Urami Bushi' used for the film series "Female Prisoner Scorpion" and 'Onna No Jumon' featured in the film 'Female Prisoner Scorpion - Jailhouse 41,' which have been composed by Shunsuke Kikuchi who also composed the score for these films. At first Kaji was unsure of her singing talents as told to Hashim Bharoocha in an interview but she quickly rose to the challenge: "I told Shunsuke Kikuchi that I couldn’t imagine myself singing the songs. He said I could ignore the melody that he wrote, and just sing it the way I wanted to. That really lifted the pressure off my shoulders, and I decided to sing the song as the character in the film. The director was also happy with that idea.”​The rest of the album follows the same pattern with atmospheric songs such as "Onna Hagure Uta" or "Onna Somuki Uta" displaying Meiko's sombre singing over a superb slow-burning groove, which precedes the funkier "Hitori Kaze" featuring a wah wah guitar, a breakbeat-like rhythm section and slick string arrangement, shaping the unique Meiko Kaji signature sound.​Wewantsounds is delighted to reissue "Hajiki Uta" and the rest of Meiko Kaji superb early 70s albums for the first time in fifty years in their glorious original Japanese artwork, with remastered audio, cementing further the actress' reputation as a true international pop culture icon. 

Barely disco and hardly jazz, Rupa Biswas’ 1982 LP is the halfway point between Bollywood and Balearic. Tracked in Calgary’s Living Room Studios with a crack team of Indian and Canadian studio rats alike, Disco Jazz is a perfect fusion of East and West. Sarod and synthesizer intricately weaving around one another for 37 transcendent minutes, culminating in the viral hit “Aaj Shanibar.” Remastered from original analogue source material and with the permission and blessing of the producers and performers.

The music of Martinique poet and composer Gratien Midonet is being treated to a special three-track remix EP, A Cosmic Poet Revisited, providing a new context for the political activism and cosmic folk sound of the original recordings.A musician informed by his academic and spiritual pursuits, who penned albums in France that became cult anthems for the independence movement in his native Martinique, Midonet developed a unique sonic language that combined bélé and beguine rhythms, acoustic mysticism, Creole lyrics and electronic instrumentation.Releasing four albums across a ten-year period between 1979 and 1989, Midonet’s catalogue has been revisited for the first time on Time Capsule compilation, A Cosmic Poet from Martinique (TIME009).With the label also reissuing all four original albums digitally over a number of months, this extensive retrospective of Midonet’s career is joined by an EP featuring three new interpretations from a trio of like-minded sonic disciples from across the globe.On the A-Side, Sapporo-based producer and sound designer Kuniyuki Takahashi tugs at the spiritual threads of Midonet’s ‘Osana’ to unravel the sun-soaked funk devotional into an 11-minute deep house odyssey.Up next, London-based Time Capsule boss Kay Suzuki’s soft touch rework of ‘Roulo’ emphasises the organic syncopation of Midonet’s original to craft a tantalising slow-burner that ebbs and flows with a natural ease.Closing out proceedings, Romanian duo Khidja provide an acid-tinged adaptation of ‘La Reine’, the final track of the Time Capsule compilation. A minimalist affair which nods towards kosmische musik in its forward motion, Khidja bring the loose drums and elastic synth lines to the front on what is a fittingly euphoric climax to the EP.Speaking to compilation curator Cedric Lassonde, Midonet stressed the spiritual necessity of his music in approaching “the transcendental worlds whose door remains closed for most humans”.In curating a remix project that seeks not to exaggerate the intention of the originals but to compliment them, Time Capsule has succeeded in lifting Gratien Midonet’s message of mystical togetherness into new realms.

Vocal harmonies and arrangements and excellent guitar work are masterfully combined creating a joyful journey featuring the undisputed talent of Raymundo Bittencourt, Octávio Burnier and Paulo Moura."The human voice is more than just a musical instrument; it is ally to the thought. Vocal art is one of the most beautiful forms of musical expression and an endless resource. It's a shame that so few devote themselves to it in our popular music. I would therefore like to congratulate AQUARIUS and CONTINENTAL for the release of this LP and may it be received by all with the same affection and attention than those who dedicated themselves to making it" Paulinho Tapajos